The present invention relates to fuel additives and particularly to hydrocarbon fuel additives intended to improve liquid fuel combustion efficiency. The benefits of the invention are not limited to any single liquid fuel. For example, the additive may be used with home heating fuel, diesel fuel, residual oil used in a large industrial burner, jet aircraft fuels, and other fuels.
Fuel additives of varying compositions have been known for over 40 years, and have demonstrated varying degrees of effectiveness. Only a few of those compositions either claimed to or actually do improve combustion efficiency, while many are useful as anti-sludging, anticorrosive, or anti-gelling agents.
The present invention is designed to improve combustion efficiency in a variety of combustion devices including gasoline and diesel engines, jet engines, boilers and other apparatus. Since other problems must also be encountered, this present invention is frequently combined with other components common to other additives for the additional purpose of anti-sludging, pour point suppression etc. None of these other components is either required by or a subject of the present invention.
The invention relies in part on:
1. Reduction in surface tension sufficient to reduce the droplet size. This results in a greater surface to volume ratio and faster and more complete burning. Faster burning is usually important to the combustion of fuels. For example, there is only a finite time period for burning within a reciprocating internal combustion engine.
2. Reduce the ignition delay. The ignition delay is the time between the application of a spark or the like and actual ignition. This is a very small period of time and the additive, in accordance with the invention, usually reduces the period by anywhere from one to three or four milliseconds.
3. Provides a catalytic oxidizer so the fuel burns a little faster.
The invention provides a combination of materials which makes a major difference. Some known additives having a carbon oxygen nitrogen bond such as nitrates have commonly been used in fuels. They are objectionable because they are generally very toxic and some are carcinogenic. Amyl nitrate, for instance, is an example of a substance which is objectionable.